Machine for forming artificial pressed fuel.



I. POREMAN & J. L. THORNTON. MACHINE FOR FORMING ARTIFICIAL PRESSEDFUEL.

' APPLICATION FILED MAR. 12, 1908. 949, 1 76. Patented Feb. 15, 1910.

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APPLICATION FILED MAB-.12, 1908. 949, 1 7 6. Patented Feb. 15, 1910.

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I. FORBMAN-& J. L. THORNTON.

MACHINE FOR FORMING ARTIFICIAL PRESSED FUEL.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 12. 1908. Patented Feb. 15, 1910.

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I. FOREMAN & J. L. THORNTON. MACHINE FOR FORMING ARTIFICIAL PRESSEDFUEL. APPLICATION FILED MAR.12,1908. 949, 1 '76 Patented Feb. 15,1910.

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I 'II// NITED STATES PATENT FFIGE.

IRA FOREMAN AND JOHN L. THORNTON, F LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

MACHINE FOR FORMING ARTIFICIAL PRESSED FUEL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 15, 1910.

Application filed March 12, 1908. Serial No. 420,601.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, IRA FOREMAN and JOHN L. THORNTON, citizens of theUnited States, residing in Los An eles, county of Los Angeles, State ofCalifornia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Machines forForming Artificial Pressed Fuel, of which the following is aspecificatlon.

Our invention relates to a machine for forming artificial fuel fromcomminutedmaterial which will bond the same under heavy pressure, andthe object thereof is to provide an efficient machine that will bondsuch material around a flexible core and which is capable of making acontinuous stick and which is capable of cutting up the stick intosuitable lengths. \Ve accomplish these objects by the mechanismdescribed herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of our improved machine. Fig. 2 is a sideelevation of the same. Fig. 3 is an enlarged front detail of themechanism for cutting the material the desired length. Fig. at is a sideelevation of the parts shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view ofthe parts shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is an enlarged front sectionalelevation of the detail of the die and rope mechanism. Fig. 7 is abroken top plan of the parts shown in Fig. 6.

In the drawings we have shown a two unit machine, but machines may beconstructed with one or more units, as each unit works independently ofthe other units, and each unit is constructed of complete operativeparts, of the same construct-ion and operation. lVhere two or more unitsare used, a common frame 10 would be used for all the units up to areasonable number. In the frame preferably at the top thereof is mountedthe driving shaft 11 carrying the driving pulley 12 which is operated bybelts 13 driven in any suitable manner. The driving shaft carries apinion 14 which meshes with a gear 15 mounted on shaft 16, which carriesas many eccentric disks 17 as there are working units in the commonframe. Each eccentric disk is provided with an eccentric frame 18 whichis secured to eccentric rod 19 pivotally connected at 20 to the head 21of the compression plunger. The upper portion of the compressionplunger, or the part connected to the head, consists of a hollow body22, with a slot 23 in the side thereof for the passage therethrough ofthe core which is preferably small rope or heavy cord 2 1. To the bottomof the body is secured a steel shoe 25 which extcriorly is the same sizeof the body and is centrally bored to provide longitudinallytherethrough a channel 26. The plunger is guided by a guide block 27secured to the frame, through which guide block the plungerreciprocates. The plunger also reciprocates through a feed box 28 andcarries the material below the shoe into the die in which the materialis compressed to the required density, to bond the material bycompression. This die consists of a tubular body 29, the upper portionof which is exteriorly threaded up to the head 30. The lower portion ofthe body is tapered as shown at 31. The lower portion of the body isprovided with four equi-distant slots which extend from the tapered endupwardly about half the length of the die. The die screws into thecentral wall 33 of the cooling jacket which has a central boretherethrough, the upper portion of which is internally screw threaded asbest shown in Fig. ti, for the reception of the screw threads of thedie. Just below the screw threaded portion, the central bore tapers tolit the normal taper of the die, and below the die the bore is of adiameter equal to the internal diameter of the lower end of the die whenin its normal position.

31 is the outer wall of the cooling jacket, and 35 is the bottom of thecooling jacket which is provided with a screw threaded bore for thereception of the inner wall of the cooling jacket which screws thereinas shown in Fig. 6. This detachable construction of the inner wall ofthe cooling jacket is for convenience in manufacture, as it is easier tohandle the inner wall detached from the other portions, when linshingthe same for use.

A ,liquid supply pipe 36 opens into the bottom of the water jacket. Thisliquid supply pipe is connected to a source of supply not shown, fromwhich suitable cooling liquid is supplied to the jacket, which wouldpreferably be water. Through the outer wall of the cooling jacket andnear the top thereof are ports 37 through which the cooling liquidintroduced into the jacket escapes into a collecting trough 38 fromwhich it is led by a pipe 39 outside the building.

A key 40 inserted in suitable keyways in the outer and inner walls asshown in Fig. 6 prevents the accidental rotation of the inner wall.

By slitting the lower portion of the die and by having the same receivedinto a tapered bore the lower end of the bore through the die can bereduced in size so as to cause the desired resistance upon the materialpassing through the die to cause the same to bond itself around the coreas the material and core is forced through the die.

In the lower end of the central bore of the cooling jacket is thedelivery pipe 41 through which the finished material passes.

Mounted in suitable bearings secured to the frame are core drums 42which carry the core material 24 thereon. The core material passesthrough a guide pulley 43 thence around friction winch 44, a sufficientnumber of times to produce the desired tension, thence around pulley ofthe take up de vice which consists of pulley 45 and spring 46, thencearound direction changing pulley 47 and into tube 48 which extends fromthe feed box up through the shoe and tubular body and out through theslot and preferably has the outer end enlarged and. funnel shaped.

49 is the feed hopper into which the comminuted material is deliveredand from this feed hopper the material is conveyed by screw conveyor 50to the feed box. The screw conveyor shaft is provided with a bevel gear51 which meshes with bevel gear 52 mounted on shaft 53. On shaft 53 ismounted a sprocket wheel 54 which is connected by chain 55 with asprocket wheel 56 mounted on shaft 16. It will be understood that thereis a conveyer for each unit.

As the material is fed into the feed box the shoe of the compressionplunger reciprocates through the same and carries the material down intothe die and compresses the same therein around the core material, eachstroke forcing more material into the die and compressing the samearound the core material until the desired compression is obtained,which is a compression sufficient to bond the material around the core.The additional material as it is compressed will force the formedmaterial into the delivery tube and as soon as a suflicient length ofthe material has passed out of the end of the delivery tube the same iscut off automatically by the following described mechanism: In a guideframe 57 is mounted a cutter or knife 58 which is adapted. to moveacross the end of the delivery tube at right angles thereto. This knifeis moved by arm 59 pivotally secured at 60 to lever 61 the upper end ofwhich is furcated and in the furcations thereof is mounted ananti-friction roller 62 which bears against the cam 63 mounted on ashaft 64. Lever 61 is pivotally mounted at 65 to the frame, and on thelower end thereof is secured a spring 66, the other end of which isfastened to the frame as shown in Fig. 4. This spring keeps the frictionroller in engagement with the cam, and when the parts are in theposition shown in Fig. 4, as lever 61 is moved by the cam the end of arm59 bears against the end of the knife and pushes the same across the endof the delivery tube, thereby severing all of the material that projectsbelow the end thereof from that which is in the delivery tube. Thismovement is so timed that the compression plunger is on the upwardstroke as the knife passes to and fro across the end of the deliverytube. The return movement of the cutter is effected by a rod 67 one endof which is secured to the knife and the other is secured to the returnlever v p (38 which is pivoted at 69 to the frame.- It will be observedthat lever 68 moves toward the cam whenever the knife is pushed acrossthe end of the delivery tube and that the cam engages lever 68 to returnthe knife back. To prevent the reciprocation of the knife across the endof the delivery tube upon each revolution of the cam, and permit it topass across the same when desired, the following mechanism is provided:A rod 70 is telescopically mounted in a tube 71 secured to the frame.Rod 70 carries an arm 72, the outer end of which carries a frictionroller 73 which bears against the underside of arm 59 and normally holdsthe v end of said arm at an elevation above the cutter, so that as arm59 is reciprocated by the cam it passes above the knife until the arm isdepressed to the position shown in Fig. 4, when arm 59 is brought intoengagement with the rear end of the cutter by spring 74, one end ofwhich is secured to the arm and the other to the frame.

Resting upon the top of rod 70 is a lever 75 which is pivoted at 76. Theother end of this lever is adapted to be engaged by an adjustable collar77 mounted on the end of rod 78, which rod is carried by a toothed wheel7 9 mounted in bearings secured to the delivery tube. The delivery tubeis provided with a slot 80 best shown in Fig. 3 through which the edgeof toothed wheel projects far enough into the interior of the tube to beengaged by the material pass ing down therethrough and to be revolvedthereby. When this toothed wheel has been operated to bring rod 78 tothe position shown in Figs. 3 and 4 collar 7 7 has raised the end oflever 75 with which it is engaged sufficiently to depress the other endbearing upon rod 7 0 to depress the same against the action of spring 81to lower anti-friction roller 73 to the position shown in Fig. 4 whichis a position which permits arm 59 to engage the knife. The knifecarries a detaching arm 82 which, when the knife is moved forward acrossthe end of the delivery tube engages collar 77 and moves the same frombeneath the end of lever 75, whereupon spring 81 throws the end of thelever below the collar and friction roller 7 3 engages the end of arm 59and elevates the same above the plane of the knife so that it will nolonger engage the same when reciprocated by the cam. As fresh materialis forced out of the delivery tube, toothed wheel 7 9 is revolved,thereby carrying collar 77 below the end of lever 7 5 when the rod 7 8is at its lowest stroke, and when the toothed wheel is revolved so as toagain bring the collar into engagement with lever 75 sufficiently toagain depress arm 72 to permit arm 59 to again engage the arm of thecutter another stick is cut off by the knife. It will be understood thatthe size of the toothed wheel determines the length of the stick as astick is cut off each time the toothed wheel is revolved. The stickswhen out off drop upon a traveling apron 83 which travels below themachine and carries the sticks to a bin not shown.

I'Iaving described our invention what we claim is:

1. In a machine for making artificial fuel.

the combination of a die; a reciprocating plunger having a core channeltherein; means for feeding a flexible inflammable core through saidchannel; and means independent of the mountings of the core carryingdevice for holding the core material taut during the reciprocation ofthe plunger.

2. In a machine for making artificial fuel the combination of areciprocating plunger, said plunger having a central bore and a slot onone side thereof; an adjustable die into which said plungerreciprocates; a

water jacket surrounding said die; a delivery tube below said (lie; andmechanism for cutting off predetermined lengths of fuel as the same isprojected below the delivery tube.

In a machine for making artificial fuel, the combination of a die; areciprocating plunger having a central bore in the lower portion and aslot in the side thereof; and means for feeding a flexible core throughthe plunger.

4. In a machine for making artificial fuel, an adjustable die; a waterjacket surrounding the same; a reciprocating plui'iger hav ing a corechannel therein; means for feeding a flexible core under tension throughsaid plunger; and means for cutting off predetermined lengths of formedmaterial.

In a machine for making artificial fuel an adjustable die; a waterjacket surrounding the same; a reciprocating plunger having in the lowerportion a central core channel opening through the side; mains to feed aflexible core under tension through said channel; a delivery tube; acutter, and means to reciprocate said cutter across the end of thedelivery tube at predetermined periods.

In witness that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto subscribed ournames this 4th day of March, 1908.

IRA FOREMAN. JOHN L. THORNTON.

\Vitnesses G. E. HAnrrIAM, S. B. AUSTIN.

